Infinity and Life

This chapter aims to trace some of the major steps Leibniz takes before drawing the line between living and nonliving things. The author first presents a brief sketch of the way in which Leibniz uses infinity initially to describe, and ultimately to define, living beings. In so doing, the author traces the development of the way Leibniz uses two concepts—infinity and life—that initially seem disparate, until they come together in his distinction between natural and artificial machines. As will become clear in this brief survey, according to Leibniz, to be living and active turns out to be a prerequisite for being a real entity. In other words, Leibniz comes to associate being with being animate, or being activated by some soul-like thing—anima, entelechy, or substantial form, as he variously terms the source of activity and life in living beings.